Creating a Puzzle Pattern

Learning to create your own image elements in Photoshop is essential for
making effective use of the program. Working with patterns can help you think
creatively about implementing Photoshop tools, and help you create unique and
personalized effects. This article shows you how to create and apply a puzzle
pattern, which in turn can be applied to any image and then easily reused or
re-created.

Richard Lynch is the author of a number of books and articles on Photoshop,
scanning, and digital imaging. This article is excerpted from his book Special
Edition Using Adobe Photoshop 6.

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Introduction

A common request on Photoshop listservers and newsgroups is for a jigsaw puzzle
pattern or an action that creates a puzzle "look." The most frustrating
thing about those posts is that the posters are probably spending far more time
looking for a prepared solution than they would if they just sat down with Photoshop
and created the solution themselves.

Simple patterns are actually very easy to create in Photoshop. In a few minutes,
it is easy to create this kind of pattern; once you create one and see how it
works, you'll get ideas for others.